Palestinian President Responds To Trump’s Mixed Message Of Peace In Middle East

-
August 20, 2017

The conflict between Israel and Palestine is one of the most complex foreign policy issues that any U.S. President will have to face. Sadly, there is no easy solution here, but Donald Trump pledged that he would find a solution. In fact, earlier this year he stated that “There is no reason there’s not peace between Israel and the Palestinians – none whatsoever.” Unfortunately for the people who live in that region, there are lots of reason for the conflict between Israel and Palestine. A true peace isn’t something that can be hashed out over a game of golf or a few meetings.

A few months ago, Trump assigned his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to the job of helping broker peace in the region. The choice of Kushner was an odd one. After all, the man has no foreign policy experience a no strong ties to the region. And, as it turns out, Kushner and the Trump administration are no closer to bringing peace to the region than past presidents. In fact, Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas has expressed confusion at the Trump administration’s handling of the situation.

‘I have met with Trump envoys about 20 times since the beginning of his term as president of the United States. Every time, they repeatedly stressed to me how much they believe and are committed to a two-state solution and a halt to construction in the settlements. I have pleaded with them to say the same thing to Netanyahu, but they refrained. They said they would consider it but then they didn’t get back to me.

‘I can’t understand how they are conducting themselves with us…there is chaos in the (Trump) administration.’

Kushner is scheduled to visit the region later this month, but, given the tensions in the region, it is unclear how much progress he will be able to make.

In terms of Trump’s actual proposals for the situation, a two-state solution is one of the more common proposals. In short, it would create a Palestinian state. However, one of the biggest areas of contention is that of Jerusalem. The city is considered sacred to Jews and Muslims and many within Palestine want to split the city in a manner similar to what occurred with Berlin during the Cold War. This is, of course, unacceptable to many within Israel.

In terms of Israel’s relationship to the United States, Trump enjoys a strong amount of support from Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party. Even after Trump’s weak response to a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, the country’s communication minister, Ayoub Kara, praised Trump for his support of Israel.

‘His relations with the prime minister of Israel are wonderful, and after enduring the terrible years of Obama, Trump is the unquestioned leader of the free world, and we must not accept anyone harming him.’

Netanyahu and President Obama famously clashed several times. Netanyahu openly supported Mitt Romney during the 2012 elections and gave a speech to Congress attacking President Obama. Despite this, President Obama remained steadfast in his support of Israel, though he expressed a strong desire for peace in the region.